The Home

Rooted in the traditions of "home", The Hannah B.G. Shaw Home focuses on resident choice as fundamental to how we care for residents. Resident participation, coupled with family involvement and the professional interdisciplinary team, yield some of the most positive outcomes in the nation.

Rated twice by US News & World Reports in the top twenty-five facilities in the nation and three times by the Massachusetts Department of Public Health customer satisfaction surveys as number two in the state, Hannah B.G. Shaw Home should be considered as a potential home to place a loved one for their medical care needs.

As a not-for-profit provider, we are driven by the mission of the organization to care for seniors who no longer can care for themselves, or just need some assistance. Our goal is to enable residents to age in a senior community that affords them the same lifestyle, dignity, and respect they enjoyed living independently. Quality of Life, Quality of Care and Clinical Care Appropriateness is the cornerstone of our culture.

Our Story

Rooted in the traditions of "home", The Hannah B.G. Shaw Home focuses on resident choice as fundamental to how we care for residents. Resident participation, coupled with family involvement and the professional interdisciplinary team, yield some of the most positive outcomes in the nation.

Rated twice by US News & World Reports in the top twenty-five facilities in the nation and three times by the Massachusetts Department of Public Health customer satisfaction surveys as number two in the state, Hannah B.G. Shaw Home should be considered as a potential home to place a loved one for their medical care needs.

As a not-for-profit provider, we are driven by the mission of the organization to care for seniors who no longer can care for themselves, or just need some assistance. Our goal is to enable residents to age in a senior community that affords them the same lifestyle, dignity, and respect they enjoyed living independently. Quality of Life, Quality of Care and Clinical Care Appropriateness is the cornerstone of our culture.

The best way to experience the Hannah B.G. Shaw Home difference is to visit the Home in person.

I have always been active and independent. There came a time a few years ago that I realized I could no longer live safely on my own—I needed help. I found that help at the Hannah B.G. Shaw Home and much more. There is always someone to talk to and laugh with. The food is great and they have something going on all the time; day trips, games, reading, music, Wii bowling and more. The dedicated staff can’t do enough to make you feel happy, safe and comfortable. Most importantly, I have all the dignity, respect, and comfort I choose with the same freedoms I had living alone. I am grateful I found this lovely Home to live in.

— Yvonne Wright

HISTORICAL MILESTONES

• Thomas Bartlett Griffith born May 23, 1823 to Ellis Griffith & Lucy M. Bent - Middleboro, MA. The family tree can be traced back to 1567, England, Joshua Griffith.

• T.B. Griffith takes a two year whaling voyage, travels to Cincinnati (the far West), and returns to become clerk of the Ellis Furnace Co. He later becomes the owner of the company and marries Hannah Dunham of Carver on December 22, 1852.

• Thomas Griffith (Hannah's father) serves in the Civil War as Captain in the Massachusetts volunteers and retires as a Major.

• Upon his return, Major Griffith invests heavily in the Boston Fruit Company which merged with the United Fruit Company and eventually becomes Chiquita (International) Brand.

• Hannah had two brothers, Henry & Thomas Jr., neither who lived to adulthood. It is speculated that these two deaths were why the Griffith family became involved in the Spiritualist movement and certainly why Hannah inherited such a large sum of money after her father's death. Hannah continued to stay involved in the Spiritualist movement until her death. Throughout her life she believes she talks to her father through a medium.

• On November 14, 1881 Hannah Bartlett Griffith marries Benjamin Ward Shaw in Carver, Massachusetts; the same day as her birthday. The family initially resided in Boston, Massachusetts where the Murdock Parlor Grate Company (successor of the Ellis Furnace Company) had several showrooms.

• The couple traveled extensively throughout their marriage and had homes in Weymouth, Bridgewater and Middleboro.

• Benjamin Shaw operated a livery in Jamaica Plain and later worked at the Middleboro Agricultural Society, where he also drove racehorses.

• Mr. Shaw eventually operated the Tispaquin Farm, the current site of the Hannah B.G. Shaw Home.

• Hannah's father, Major Griffith dies in 1897 and her mother in 1910. Hannah becomes the sole heir to the company and all of the Major's investments; she subsequently begins to make many philanthropic donations.

• In 1914, Hannah donates the Sons of Veterans Memorial in Carver, named after her father.

• In 1922, Hannah donates her home on S. Main Street in Middleboro to the Montgomery Home Association.

• In 1930, Hannah donates funding for an addition to St. Luke's Hospital including x-ray equipment and the expansion of the emergency room

• In 1933, Hannah passes away. In her will she develops a trust which donates her home with 55 acres and a sum of money to fund its operation which will become the Hannah B.G. Shaw Home upon the death of her husband Benjamin.

• Hannah B.G. Shaw Home opened for residents in February of 1941.

• Since its opening, the Hannah B.G. Shaw Home has had five major renovations. The first was in 1950 with the addition of extra residential care rooms on the South wing. In 1958 additional rooms were added to the same wing. In 1990, the Home converted some rooms and built the skilled unit. In 2002, construction began on the wellness center which modernized our kitchen, residential dining area, and activities area. Finally, in 2014 the Home added an additional 60,000 sq.ft. to the existing building which encompassed 52 private bedrooms with full private bathrooms in Household model, a state-of-the-art rehabilitation gym and café.